Central Asia news

Turkey grounds gold-laden Turkmen plane

26.02.2013 00:38 msk

Ferghana

Turkish police discovered on 22 February 2013 over a ton of gold on a plane under the Turkmen flag, Gundogar says the Aksham newspaper reported.

The plane belongs to the Turkmen Howa Yollary (The Turkmen Airlines) air company and was grounded in the Sabiha Gokcen international airport near Istanbul while planning a takeoff with 1.3 tons of golden bars onboard.

A Turkish construction company called Polymex claimed ownership of the cargo. It was trying to secretly ship the gold to Turkmenistan, where it is engaged, declaring at the customs the cargo was bathroom utilities.

The company circulated a press release two days later, citing an unintended mistake in filling out customs forms.

“This gold will be used for purchasing construction materiel in those countries, which cannot receive incoming bank transactions due to international embargoes,” the Polymex-circulated statement reads.

According to the Khronika Turkmenistana, Polymex enjoy privileges and prestigious status in Turkmenistan thanks to its friendly ties with President Gurbanguly Berdymuhamedow. According to the RFE/RL’s Kazakh service, President Berdymuhamedow is a key person in the construction company’s thriving.